Title: Forgive My Sins (Psalm 51:1-9)
Psalm 51 is a psalm of penance written by David after he was rebuked by the prophet Nathan, who had committed adultery and murder. From this poem we can learn the sinfulness of man, the way of repentance, and the meaning of true service.
1. "Have mercy on me"
David asks God for mercy. No man can attain to the righteousness of God, who is all-powerful and omniscient, and cannot boldly stand before his wisdom. God's mercy, grace, and love are the only way for man to come before God. David asks forgiveness for crossing the forbidden borders, transgressing the limits of morality, challenging the rightful authority and crossing the gold set by God with the supplication of “Erase my iniquity” (v. 1). We also ask for deliverance from original sin and the fall of nature (v. 5) with the prayer, “Wash thoroughly from my iniquities” (v. 2a). On the other hand, one of the original meanings of 'sin' is that the arrow did not reach the target or that it missed. David prayed, "Cleanse my sins," and was merciful for his lack of God's will and his own shortcomings. I'm looking for something to give. David, looking at himself suffering from legal sins, original sins, and self-inflicted sins, confesses that all these are "my sins" and asks for the Lord's mercy and grace.
2. "Forgive me my sins"
David confesses his sins in three stages. First, he honestly confesses his sins (verse 3). After committing a sin, it is a universal human psychology to try to conceal, deny, excuse, or justify and impute the sin to others. But David acknowledged his faults and mistakes. Also, David felt guilty for the sins he had committed and said that he could not bear it because the sins were always in front of him. And by confessing our sins, we expose not only external sins but also internal sins. David did not become a sinner because he sinned, but realized the seriousness of original sin that he had no choice but to sin because he had a sinful nature, and asks God to purify him with hyssop. Hyssop was used as an instrument for purifying lepers and for sprinkling blood in temple ceremonies. There is no forgiveness of sins without the shedding of blood. Even if our sins are greater than David, we can be forgiven when we ask for mercy by believing in the blood of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
3. "Renew"
David seeks inner renewal after seeking God's mercy and forgiveness of sins. Ask God to create a clean heart. Crime is caused by the evil hidden within man rather than by external temptation. Since there is nothing inherently good in us (Romans 7:18), God the Creator must create a clean heart for us. David also asks for the continued indwelling of the Holy Spirit to be renewed. This is because the reality of a fragile human being that no matter how much we are created with a pure heart, we cannot but fall into sin again. When the Holy Spirit withdraws from our heart, we will be attacked by the devil and will have no choice but to fall. Further, David pleaded with God to restore the joy of salvation. What he lost was not salvation itself, but the joy. Man who is in sin loses the joy of salvation. For human beings who are essentially in sin, the best way to prevent recidivism is to hold on to God.
I will conclude
David had several purposes in asking God for mercy, forgiveness, and renewal. First, it was to teach sinners to bring them back (verses 16, 17). Second, it was to praise the Lord and preach the gospel to people (verse 14). Third, it was to offer a perfect sacrifice (verses 18, 19). In the presence of God who wants all people to return to Him, I hope that we too can become priests of the Gentiles and become blessed saints who please God.